This day in the war in the Pacific 65 years ago.

[syscom3]

Aug 13th 1942

ALASKA (11th AF): 1 B-24 flies photo reconnaissance over Kiska .

SWPA (5th AF): A Japanese convoy, headed toward Basabua near Gona, with 3,000 construction troops, is attacked first by B-17s 76 mi NE of Gona, followed by B-26s 20-25 mi N of Gona and another B-17 attack as the convoy approaches landing position. Lost is B-26 40-1492.

NG: Japanese ground forces attack at Deniki, driving Allied forces back about 5 mi (8 km) and firmly securing the Buna-Kokoda trail. A Japanese Army detachment landed last night at Buna, New Guinea.

 

[syscom3]

Aug 14th 1942

ALASKA (11th AF): In the Aleutians, a B-24 trying to fly photo reconnaissance over Tanaga and Adak aborts over Kiska due to weather.

SWPA (5th AF): B-17s attack shipping off Gona, New Guinea. Lost on a recon mission is B-17E "Chief Seattle" 41-2656.

NG: The US submarine S-39, commanded by Francis E. Brown, ran aground on a reef off Rossel Island, S.E. of New Guinea No hands lost.

GUADALCANAL: On Guadalcanal, 3 IJN G4M "Betty" bombers from Rabaul circle and photograph Henderson Field just above the range of the Marines 90 mm AA guns.

 

[syscom3]

Aug 15th 1942

GUADALCANAL: 4 APDs (converted WWI Wickes class DDs) land the first supplies, aviation fuel and CUB 1 (aircraft maintenance unit) on Guadalcanal.
- Martin Clements, coastwatcher, Jacob Vouza and other natives arrive at the Lunga perimeter on Guadalcanal. This group will become an important part of the scouting and intelligence for the 1st MarDiv in the campaign.
- 1st Marines, 7th Division lands, including the 28th Inf Regt, detached and 7th Engr Regt, detached

SWPA (5th AF): 65th Bombardment Squadron, 43d BG (Heavy), moves from Williamstown to Torrens Creek, Australia with B-17s; first mission is 12 Nov.

 

[syscom3]

Aug 16th 1942

NG: Japanese reinforcements are landed near Buna. They will supplement the Japanese offensive towards Port Morsby through Kokoda over the Owen Stanley Mountains.

ALASKA: In the Aleutians, a US 11th Air Force B-24 Liberator aborts a photo reconnaissance flight over Adak Island because of mechanical failure. The IJA 32nd Independent Field Anti-aircraft Battery arrives on Attu Island.

U.S.: The 35,000-ton South Dakota Class battleship USS Alabama is commissioned at the U.S. Navy Yard in Norfolk, Virginia. Alabama is the last of four battleships to be completed this year; the others are South Dakota, Indiana and Massachusetts.

 

[syscom3]

Aug 17th 1942

PTO: Japanese positions on Makin Island is raided by the 2nd USMC Raider Battalion.
AMPLIFYING THE ABOVE
In Makin Atoll, Gilbert Islands, Companies "A" and "B," 2d Marine Raider Battalion (Lieutenant Colonel Evans F. Carlson, USMC), land on Butaritari Island. The purpose of this raid is to destroy Japanese
installations, take prisoners, gain intelligence on the area and divert Japanese attention and reinforcements from the Solomon Islands; Intelligence estimates that there are 45 Japanese on the island. The Marines had been transported in the submarines USS Nautilus and USS Argonaut, each of which could carry a company. The submarines surfaced in heavy rain and high seas and Carlson changed the plans; originally, the two companies were to land on widely separated beaches but the new
plan has them landing together. One platoon did not get the word and ended up landing alone in what became the enemy rear. The two companies crossed the island and then turned southwest towards the known Japanese positions and a fire fight soon ensued. The Japanese launched two banzai attacks which were easily dispatched; unknown to the Americans, these attacks nearly wiped out the Japanese garrison.
At 1130 hours, two enemy aircraft appeared and they dropped bombs, none of which hit the Marines. Two hours later, 12 aircraft appeared, several of them seaplanes. Two large seaplanes landed in the lagoon and were fired upon by the Marines; one burst into flames and the other crashed on takeoff. The remaining aircraft bombed and strafed the island for an hour.
The natives on the island reported that Japanese reinforcements had landed from the seaplanes and two small ships in the lagoon. Colonel Carlson believed there was a sizeable Japanese force on the island and it was decided to evacuate the troops in their rubber boats. However, a heavy surf soaked the outboard engines making them inoperative, boats capsized and equipment was lost. Several boatloads of troops made it to the submarines but Carlson and 120 men ended up on the shore where they remained into the next day.

ALASKA (11th AF): 1 B-24 flies photo reconnaissance over Buldir, Kiska and Amchitka despite heavy rain.

CBI: (CATF): Unit moves in China: 16th Fighter Squadron, 51st Fighter Group, from Kunming to Chungking with P-40s; 75th Fighter Squadron, 23d Fighter Group, from Hengyang to Chanyi with P-40s.

PTO: - U.S. air raids on Japanese at Gilbert

SWPA (5th AF): A single B-17 bombs Kavieng. Japanese bomb 7-Mile Drome and destroys several aircraft on the ground including: DC-5 Tail Code VH-CXA. Damaged are C-49 Dakota 44-83228.

 

[syscom3]

Aug 18th 1942

ALASKA: A B-24 takes oblique photos of Amchitka and Tanaga ; Heavy fog over Kiska and Attu precludes armed reconnaissance.

CBI 10th AF: Major General Clayton L Bissell becomes Commanding General 10th Air Force, relieving Brigadier General Earl L Naiden who now devotes full time to command of India-China Ferry Command under the 10th Air Force

CATF: 76th Fighter Squadron, 23d Fighter Group, moves from Kweilin to Kunming, China with P-40s.

SWPA (5th AF): For a second consecutive day a single B-17 attacks Kavieng Airfield; bombs fall in the airfield dispersal area.

NG: General Horii arrives at Buna.

GUADALCANAL: The 900 men of the IJA 28th Regiment are landed at Taivu Point, east of the US Marine perimeter at Lunga Point on Guadalcanal. These men are commanded by Col. Ichiki. His orders are to attack the estimated 3,000 marines on Guadalcanal. If not successful in overrunning the airfield, he is to continue harrassing raids to prevent completion of the field,
while awaiting the arrival of further reinforcements. Col. Ichiki plans to attack on his second night and requests permission to occupy Tulagi. He is a member of the "Bamboo Spear Tactics" school within the Japanese Army.

 

[lucanus]

- 1st Marines, 7th Division lands, including the 28th Inf Regt, detached and 7th Engr Regt, detached

I am sorry for this but it should read: 1st Marines 7th Regiment, since
at no time in our long history has the Corps ever had 7 Divisions....5
is the limit and it was only during WWII. This unit had a crusty CO
named Lewis "Chest" Puller, a true legend of the Corps, he won 5 Navy
Crosses

 

[syscom3]

Aug 19th 1942

ALASKA: mechanical failure prevents a US 11th Air Force B-24 Liberator from flying reconnaissance over Tanaga Island.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: General Nishino, with the Kawaguchi Detachment, approaches Guadalcanal by sea. His men read a training manual that says,
"Westerners -- being very haughty, effeminate, and cowardly -- intensely dislike fighting in the rain or mist or in the dark. They cannot conceive night to be a proper time for battle -- though it is excellent for dancing. In these weaknesses lie our great opportunity. "
Colonel Kiyamo Ichiki's First Echelon of 917 men arrives at Guadalcanal' s Taivu Point at 0100 hours local. The men unload and start marching in the dark nine miles to Tetere, where they take a break. Early in the morning, Martin Clemens is asked to provide native guides and scouts to locate the Ichiki force. Daniel Pule is assigned to a Marine patrol, and police Sergeant Major Jacob Vouza leads a native patrol of his own.
Early that day, Marine Captain Charles H. Brush hits the trail with a patrol of 60 men from Company A, 1st Battalion, 1st Marines. They run an encounter a 38-man patrol from Ichiki's detachment. A jungle firefight ensues, and the Marines kill all but five of the Japanese. Brush notes that the bodies of four Japanese officers and 29 men wear the star insignia of the Imperial Army as opposed to the chrysanthemum of the Imperial Navy on their fresh clothes. Obviously this is a new force. Their large amounts of communications equipment suggest a large unit. Their maps show the Japanese know the Marine positions. Brush immediately returns to headquarters.
The Japanese survivors return to Ichiki's force and although his patrol has been annihilated, Ichiki presses on through the jungle. Marine General Vandegrift studies the captured maps, and realizes that the Japanese are coming and know his dispositions. His officers urge a counterattack but Vandegrift wisely decides to await the Japanese within his perimeter. The Marines will dig in along Alligator Creek, which Martin Clemens has named after its inhabitants, which are actually crocodiles. The Marines think the sluggish waterway is actually the Tenaru River.
Three Japanese destroyers, HIJMS Kagero, HIJMS Hagikaze and HIJMS Maikaze, shell Tulagi. Allied Air Forces B-17s, flying from Espiritu Santo, bomb the destroyers and one aircraft scores direct hits on the HIJMS Hagikaze's stern, killing 33 and wounding 13. Hagikaze limps home.

NEW GUINEA: Lead elements of 7 Australian Division, veterans of Tobruk, arrive at Port Moresby, to stem the Japanese tide.

SWPA (5th AF): B-17s bomb shipping off Faisi.

 

[syscom3]

Aug 20th 1942

SOLOMON ISLANDS: Late in the afternoon, the USN's Task Group 2.6, comprised of the auxiliary aircraft carrier USS Long Island the light cruiser USS Helena and destroyers USS Aylwin and USS Dale, reaches a point 190 miles southeast of Guadalcanal. USS Long Island is carrying 31 aircraft of two squadrons of Marine Aircraft Group Twenty Three. The 31 aircraft and the squadrons are: (1) 19 F4F-4 Wildcats of Marine Fighting Squadron Two Hundred Twenty Three and (2) 12 SBD-3 Dauntlesses of Marine Scout Bombing Squadron Two Hundred Thirty Two.
The aircraft, the first U.S. aircraft to be based on the island, begin landing on Henderson Field at 1700 hours local. Lieutenant Colonel Gerald Thomas, operations officer of the 1st Marine Division, will later attributes to this event a boost in morale matched by no other event during the campaign.

- Henderson Field goes into operation after being captured from the Japanese, and completed by US forces. By this date, there are 10,000 American, 3,600 Japanese troops on the island. First fighter aircraft arrive on Henderson Field, Guadalcanal. Marine Fighter Squadron 223 and Scout Bombing Squadron 232, delivered by the escort carrier Long , initiated operations from Henderson Field on Guadalcanal (20 Aug) and were joined within a week by AAF fighter elements and dive bombers from the Enterprise, and by other elements as the campaign progressed.

ALASKA: A US 11th Air Force B-24 Liberator flies photo reconnaissance over Kiska Island; a patrol is also flown over Shumagin Island.

USA: The USN redesignates its "Jeep" carriers from Aircraft Escort Vessel (AVG) to Auxiliary Aircraft Carrier (ACV).
- In the U.S., the entire West Coast is ordered to dim city lights at night. Searchlights crisscrossing the sky at Hollywood movie premieres are extinguished for the duration. Limits have also been placed on movies studios relating to the amount of cloth they could use in costumes, the quantity of new construction they could devote to sets, and the amount of film stock they could purchase. Hollywood directors must learn to limit the number of "takes" when filming movies.

 

[syscom3]

Aug 21st 1942

GUADALCANAL: 2nd Btn 1st Marines from dugin positions on the west bank of Alligator Creek on Guadalcanal successfully stop a fanatic attack by 900 IJA soldiers of the 28th Regiment, known as the Ichiki Detachment after its CO, Colonel Ichiki Kiyoano. They had landed during the night 2 days prior to the battle east of the Lunga Perimeter. This battle becomes known to history as "The Battle of the Teneru River" due to the incorrect and incomplete maps used by the Marines.
The battle starts about 0030 with some initial firefights. At 0200, with a green flare, a headlong charge by IchikiÕs 2nd Company begins. The Marines with rifles, machine guns and 37mm canister defeat this first attack. It ends with some Japanese actually reaching Marine foxholes and some hand to hand combat. Other attacks follow.
Supported by the 75mm artillery of 3rd Btn 11th Marines, they all fail. This battle welcomes the first aircrew of what will become the Cactus Airforce that arrived yesterday. It also marks the first time
American soldiers have decisively beaten an attack by the IJA. Japanese KIA are counted by the Marines at 777, 15 are captured. Marine losses are 44 KIA and 71 WIA. Jacob Vouza, a native coastwatcher, reaches US lines during the attack. He had been captured by the IJA earlier and after a severe beating and a slit throat left for dead. Vouza survives and is awarded the Silver Star by Vandegrift for his report and appointed Sgt Major in the USMC.
Later in the afternoon the 1st Btn joins 3rd Btn 1st Marines to sweep upmost of the remaining IJA soldiers.

- The Japanese send G4M "Betty" bombers and A6M "Zeke" fighters to
attack Henderson Field on Guadalcanal. The Marines have been warned by coastwatchers and the incoming raid is met by F4F Wildcats of VMF-223. The"Zekes" block the Marines attempt to attack the bombers and the G4Msbomb Henderson Field; 3 "Zekes" are shot down and 1 F4F and 1 SBD is
destroyed.

ALASKA: In the Aleutians, a US 11th Air Force B-24 Liberator trying to fly reconnaissance over Kiska Island aborts due to weather.

 

[syscom3]

August 22 1942

ALASKA (11th AF): A photo reconnaissance mission over Kiska is aborted due to overcast.

PACIFIC OCEAN AREA (POA, 7th Air Force): First AAF aircraft, 5 P-400s of the 67th Fighter Squadron, 58th Fighter Group, based on New Caledonia , arrive at Henderson Field, joining USMC aircraft which arrived earlier; these P-400s, which operate under control of Marine Aircraft Wing One (MAW-1), prove no match for Japanese Zekes or bombers at high altitudes.

SWPA (5th AF): B-17s bomb airfields at Lae and Lakunai Airfield.

GUADALCANAL: The first USAAF aircraft, 5 P-400 Airacobras of the 67th Fighter Squadron, 58th Fighter Group, based on New Caledonia Island, New Hebrides, arrive at Henderson Field, Guadalcanal Island, joining USMC aircraft which arrived earlier; these P-400s, which operate under control of Marine Aircraft Wing One (MAW-1), prove no match for Japanese Zekes or bombers at high altitudes.
The USN destroyers USS Blue and USS Henley, trying to intercept Japanese reinforcements heading for Guadalcanal, run
into the Japanese destroyer HIJMS Kawakaze, whose night-fighting experience outperforms the Americans' radar. The Blue is torpedoed at 0359 hours local and throughout the 22nd and 23rd, unsuccessful attempts are made to tow her to Tulagi. She was scuttled at 2221 on 23 August 1942. Kawakaze escapes unscathed.

NEW GUINEA: The 18th Australian Brigade lands at Milne Bay. Allied troops in the Milne Bay area now numbered more than 8,800 and the fighting at Milne Bay resulted in the first defeat of a Japanese amphibious landing in WWII.
- Buna - 11,430 Japanese troops at Buna

 

[syscom3]

Aug 23rd 1942

POA (7th AF): 333d Fighter Squadron, 18th Fighter Group, is activated at Bellows Field, Hawaii and equipped with P-39s.

SWPA (5th AF): A lone B-17 bombs Buka , Solomon.

GILBERT ISLANDS: Japanese light cruiser HIJMS Yubari, accompanied by four destroyers and supporting ships, shells Nauru Island in preparation for landings there.

EASTERN SOLOMONS: US Admiral Fletcher with TF 61 and Japanese Admiral Nagumo with the units of the IJN begin skirmishes which will result in the Battle of the Eastern Solomons. The US force built around 3 fleet carriers and the IJN force is built around 2 fleet carriers and one escort carrier. These units of the IJN are charged with a mission of delivering additional troops and supplies in a convoy to Guadalcanal. This will develop into the 3rd carrier vs. carrier battle of the war.

 

[syscom3]

Aug 24th 1942

ALASKA (11th AF): 404th Bombardment Squadron (Heavy), 28th Composite Group, begins to operate from Umnak , Aleutian with B-24s. A photo reconnaissance sortie is cancelled due to overcast.

SWPA (5th AF): B-17s hit Gasmata and airfields at Rabaul.

NG: A Japanese amphibious force leaves Buna in seven large barges and New Ireland Island, Bismarck Archipelago, in transports, heading for Milne Bay; the barges are detected by an Australian coastwatcher during the afternoon.

EASTERN SOLOMONS:East of Guadalcanal, US scout planes flying from Enterprise spot carrier Ryujo. A strike is dispatched. Then Shokaku and Zuikaku are sighted. Attempts to redirect the attack from Admiral Fletcher are unsuccessful. The Ryujo is sunk.
Japanese attacks from the two fleet carriers find Enterprise and while damaged, she is still able to land planes. One of the bombs is caught on film at the exact moment of explosion. Most of the Japanese
planes in this strike choose the Enterprise, only a few attack the Saratoga and North Carolina for superficial damage. The steering gear on Enterprise goes out of commission during damage control, and for 30 minutes the "Big E" circles with her rudder jammed hard to starboard. A second Japanese strike is spotted on radar while the Enterprise is disabled. It heads for an estimated position and does not find the US forces.

- The new tactic of centralized fighter direction, using radar, is marred by radio frequencies jammed with too many American transmissions. The mission of this Japanese Naval task force is to protect a supply and reinforcement convoy under command of Admiral Tanaka. This will become known as "The Battle of the Eastern Solomons". The final act involving the convoy will occur tomorrow.
AMPLIFYING THE ABOVE:
HIJMS Ryujo is sunk and the seaplane carrier HIJMS Chitose is damaged by SBD-3 Dauntlesses of VB-3and VS-3 and TBF-1 Avengers of Torpedo Squadon VT-8 in USS Saratoga. Light cruiser HIJMS Jintsu is damaged by SBD-3s of Marine Scout Bombing Squadron VMSB-232 based on Guadalcanal. During the night of 24/25 August, 4 Japanese warships shell Henderson Field on Guadalcanal.

PACIFIC: USN submarine USS Guardfish torpedoes and sinks a Japanese merchant passenger-cargo ship off entrance to Sendai harbor, on the northeast coast of Honshu, Japan.

U.S.: Hollywood stars Tyrone Power, 28, and Henry Fonda, 37, join the armed forces. Power joins the Marine Corps but doesn't go to boot camp until he finishes the motion picture "Crash Dive" about submarines. Fonda joins the Navy and goes straight to boot camp as a Seaman Apprentice. Power went to Officer Candidate School and was commissioned and then took flight training and was later assigned as a transport pilot in the Pacific. He was discharged in Jan 46.
Fonda served on the destroyer USS Satterlee rising to the rank of Quartermaster Third Class. Based on the recommendation of the executive officer on the ship, Fonda was commissioned a Lieutenant (jg) and served in Air Combat Intelligence in the Central Pacific; he was discharged in Oct 45.

 

[syscom3]

Aug 25th 1942

ALASKA (11th AF): A photo reconnaissance airplane flies over Kiska, Attu and Adak, then turns back because of mechanical failure.

USN - Lost is PBY 04469.

SOLOMONS: The last act of the Battle of the Eastern Solomons is played out today. The convoy bearing elements of General Kawaguchi's 35th Brigade, under command of Admiral Tanaka in Jintsu, is turned back. The convoy, intended to reinforce Guadalcanal, is bombed with two transports, light cruiser Jintsu damaged and one destroyer, Mitsuki, sunk. Jintsu is damaged by a Marine SBD from Henderson Field, Admiral Tanaka is knocked unconcious in the explosion. Mitsuki is sunk during a level bombing by B-17s. The Japanese, realizing the cost of daylight naval operations within range of Henderson Field, turn to high speed destroyer runs at night for resupply efforts. These will become known as "The Tokyo Express". Thus this battle ends as a clear victory, both tactical and strategic, for the US.
The Japanese invasion force sailing towards Guadalcanal is hit hard by 4 USMC and 3 USN SBD Dauntlesses, and 4 USMC F4F Wildcats 125 mi from the island at 0835 hours; a Marine SBD pilot hits the light cruiser HIJMS Jintsu and another damages the transport Boston Maru while a USN SBD pilot mortally damages the large transport Kinryu Maru.
At 1015 hours, 8 B-17s from Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides Island sink the destroyer HIJMS Mutsuki as it is attempting to sink the damaged transport. In the afternoon, USN SBDs attack 2 transports and their 5 escorts as they retreat back to Rabaul.

NAURU ISLAND: Japanese troops occupy undefended Nauru Island. Nauru, an 8 square mile island located about 380 nautical miles west-southwest of Tarawa Atoll in the Gilbert Islands (now Kiribati), has large phosphate deposits.

SWPA (5th AF): Japanese amphibious forces bound for Milne Bay from Buna are stranded on Goodenough when P-40s from Milne Bay destroy all of their beached barges. P-40s also attack a convoy proceeding from New Ireland toward Milne Bay but are hampered by bad weather and fail to halt landings at 3 points E of Rabi during the night of 25/26 Aug. P-400s hit the airfield and AA positions at Buna.

SOLOMON SEA: An Allied Air Force reconnaissance aircraft spots a Japanese convoy consisting of two light cruisers, five destroyers and two submarine chasers en route from Rabaul, New Britain Island, Bismarck Archipelago, to Milne Bay, Papua New Guinea. Bad weather prevents RAAF Kittyhawks of Nos. 75 and 76 Squadrons from attacking the convoy.

MOZAMBIQUE: In Portuguese South Africa, five USN nurses, who had been held as POWs by the Japanese, are repatriated to the diplomatic corps at Mozambique.
The five, Lieutenants (jg) Leona Jackson, Lorraine Christiansen, Virginia Fogerty and Doris Yetter, under the command of Chief Nurse Marion Olds, had been captured on Guam on 10 December 1942. They continued caring for casualties at the U.S. Naval Hospital on Guam until 10 January 1942 when they were transported to Japan. Held for three months in the Zentsuji Prison on Shikoku Island, they were moved to the Eastern Lodge in Kobe on 12 March until being placed on the Swedish-America line ship SS Gripsholm and brought to Mozambique.

 

[syscom3]

ALASKA (11th AF): A photo mission is aborted over Atka due to weather. A U.S. Army reconnaissance troop lands on Adak Island and finds no Japanese troops.

CBI (CATF): B-25s, which have moved temporarily from C China to Yunnani, bomb Lashio, Burma, an important rail center, highway junction and air base; covering P-40s strafe numerous targets of opportunity and shoot down at least 2 Japanese fighters.

SWPA (5th AF): P-40s, B-25s, B-26s and B-17s plus RAAF Hudsons, pound Japanese forces in Milne Bay; a large transport is damaged and most of the supplies on the beachheads E of Rabi are destroyed; Lost is B-17F 41-24354 and B-17E "The Daylight Ltd" 41-2621 (crash landing at Mareeba). P-400s strafe Buna Airfield, lost is P-400 1122.

GILBERT ISLANDS: Undefended Ocean Island, located about 242 nautical miles WSW of Tarawa Atoll, is occupied by
Japanese troops. Like Nauru Island, occupied yesterday, the island has large phosphate deposits and the loss of these two islands cause a severe shortage of fertilizer in Australia and New Zealand.

INDIA÷The training center for Chinese troops is activated at Ramgarh, Bihar Province, with Colonel Frederick McCabe as commandant.

NEW GUINEA: In Papua New Guinea, beginning at 0145 hours local, the Japanese convoy bringing the rest of the 1,170-man force from New Ireland Island, Bismarck Archipelago, arrives safely in Mime Bay. During the night of 26/27 August, the Japanese make another night attack to the west, forcing the Australian militia back to the Gama River line. In the air, elements of the Allied Air Force, RAAF Hudsons and Kittyhawks and USAAF B-25 Mitchells, B-26 Marauders and B-17 Flying Fortresses, attack Japanese forces who have landed in Milne Bay ; a large transport is damaged and most of the supplies on the beachheads east of Rabi are destroyed.
Meanwhile, Japanese forces on the track between Isurava and Deniki renew their overland drive on Port Moresby at dawn and, after a five-hour fight, the Japanese withdraw. The Japanese supply lines, which are becoming overextended, are frequently attacked by air.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: The "Tokyo Express" lands 350 Imperial Japanese Army troops east of Taivu Point on Guadalcanal. At approximately 1200 hours, 12 USMC F4F Wildcats intercept 16 "Betty" bombers which have just bombed Henderson Field. The Marine shoot down three of the bombers but they have damaged the aviation gasoline supply and two 1,000-pound bombs and several parked aircraft are damaged by bomb splinters.

U.S.: Wendell Willkie, the Republican candidate for President in the 1940 election, begins a trip around the world as the envoy of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. One of the purposes of the trip is to boost Allied solidarity.

 

[syscom3]

ALASKA (11th AF): 4 B-17s, 6 B-24s, and 2 P-38s fly weather, reconnaissance and patrol missions over Kiska and Atka . The Japanese begin to transfer the Attu garrison to Kiska, which is completed on 16 Sep.

SWPA (5th AF): USAAF B-26 Marauders and P-400 Airacobras of the Allied Air Force bomb Buna Airfield, Northeast New Guinea, while RAAF Kittyhawks strafe the beachhead and fuel dumps at Milne Bay, Papua New Guiena.. 403d Bombardment Squadron, 43d BG (Heavy), moves from Laverton to Torrens Creek, Australia with B-17s; first mission is in Oct.
- RAAF - Lost on a strafing attack on Milne Bay is P-40E A29-92.

NEW GUINEA: During the day, fresh Australian troops advance unopposed to K.B. Mission but during the night, the Japanese, with tanks, renew their attack and split the defending force which withdraws. Meanwhile, the Japanese overland drive on Port Moresby continues, with the Australians falling back gradually but Australian reinforcements are moving to the forward area.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: On Guadalcanal, A battalion of the 5th Marine Regiment lands about 1,000 yards west of Kokumbona and starts east along the shore while a company pushes west from Kukum by overland trail to intercept the Japanese withdrawal inland. That night, the "Tokyo Express" lands 128 Imperial Japanese Army troops northwest of Taivu Point.
The rear echelon of the USAAF's 67th Fighter Squadron, fourteen P-400 Airacobras, arrives at Henderson Field, Guadalcanal, from Espiritu Santo, New Hebrides Islands.

U.S.: The first of the four Iowa Class battleships, the Iowa, is launched at the U.S. Navy Yard, New York, New York.

 

[syscom3]

ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: Thirty eight Alaskan Scouts debark from the submarines, USS Triton and USS Tuna, and land on Adak Island to reconnoiter; Adak is about 219 nautical miles east of Japanese-held Kiska Island. They find no Japanese on the island.
In the air, three USAAF 11th Air Force B-17 Flying Fortresses bomb Japanese-held Kiska Island, one fails to return; all available B-24 Liberators and two flights of P-38 Lightnings fly naval cover at Nazan Bay, Atka Island located about 84 nautical miles ENE of Adak Island; and an attack mission to Japanese-held Attu Island is cancelled due to weather.

FRENCH INDOCHINA: Eight USAAF Tenth Air Force B-25 Mitchells of the China Air Task Force (CATF) hit barracks and ammunition dumps at Hoang Su Phi and a fuel dump at Phu Lo; this is the largest force of B-25s used by CATF to date, and the first B-25 mission flown without escort.

NEW GUINEA: On the Kokoda Trail in Papua New Guinea, Japanese artillery fires from dawn until about 0800 hours local preparing for an attack on Isurava. The Japanese attack does not succeed and the Australians inflict heavy Japanese casualties. In Milne Bay, the Japanese attack at 0200 hours local supported by a tank and force the Australian defenders back to an area west of No. 3 Strip.
Today, Australian Major General Alan Vasey, Deputy Chief General Staff, writes to Major General Sir Sydney Fairbairn Rowell General Officer Commanding New Guinea Force at Port Moresby, that a state of near panic prevails at General Douglas MacArthur's Headquarters in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. He also writes that that morning, MacArthur has finally taken the decision at a conference to fight the Japanese in New Guinea.
- B-26s pound forces at Milne Bay, New Guinea.
- Miline Bay - Additional Japanese land at Milne Bay.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: On Guadalcanal, the 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, returns from an attack begun yesterday, west across the Matanikau River. This is the second of many small unit actions, over the next 2 1/2 months, that will attempt to deny this area to the Japanese. The unit returns after having its Commanding Officer, Colonel Maxwell relieved. The Japanese units were allowed to slip away during the night, after he had requested evacuation of his unit by boat the previous afternoon.
In the air, two SBD's spot troop-laden Imperial Japanese Navy destroyers, carrying elements of the Kawaguchi Detachment, in New Georgia Sound at 1700 hours local; this is only 70 miles from Guadalcanal. The two SBD's attack the ships but do not score any hits. By 1730 hours, eleven SBD's of Navy VS-5 and Marine VMSB-232 are airborne and attack the ships at sundown. A VS-5 pilot scores a direct hit on the destroyer HIJMS Asagiri off Santa Isabel Island; three other destroyers are damaged. The destroyers retire without landing the troops.
Light minelayer USS Gamble (DM-15, ex DD-123), escorting a supply convoy, sinks Japanese submarine HIJMS I-123 about 40 nautical miles east of Henderson Field, Guadalcanal, in position 09.21S, 160.43E. The supply convoy safely reaches Guadalcanal.
Imperial Japanese Navy Rear Admiral JOSHIMA Takaji, at Rabaul, New Britain Island, forms a unit of float planes from various sources, known as "R Area Air Force." These float planes will operate from bases in the Solomons, i.e., Shortland Islands and Rekata Bay, Santa Isabella Island, and begin regular nightly patrols over Guadalcanal. They will become known to the Marines as "Washing Machine Charlie" and "Louie The Louse".

U.S.: In Richmond, California, the Liberty ship SS John Fitch is launched 24-days after her keel is laid at the Kaiser Shipyard.

 

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ALASKA (11th AF): A USN PBY reports a force of 3 cruisers and 4 destroyers NW of Umnak ; thereupon all aircraft of the 11th go on attack alert; the surface force then identifies itself as friendly.

CBI (CATF): B-25s pound Lashio, Burma, scoring numerous hits on the airport and starting 3 large fires in warehouse area SE of the city.

SWPA (5th AF): B-26s and P-400s hit the airfield at Buna; P-40s hit facilities in the Milne Bay area as enemy ground forces continue their drive over the Owen Stanley Range toward Port Moresby. B-17s pound Lakunai Airfield. A C5M Babs piloted by Shigetoshi Kudo chased 8 x B-17s. flying up to 7,500m then dropped an aerial burst bomb. He aimed for the B-17s on the left of the formation. The #1 plane was hit and went into clouds, so he claimed an unconfirmed. #2 caught on fire and went down.

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: USAAF B-17's of the Allied Air Force bomb the airfield at Rabaul, New Britain Island.

CORAL SEA: The Australian transport Malaita is torpedoed by Japanese submarine HIJMS RO-33 in the Gulf of Papua off Port Moresby, Papua New Guinea. An escort destroyer, the Australian HMAS Arunta, carriers out four depth charge attacks and sinks the sub about 10 nautical miles SSW of Port Moresby in position 09.36S, 147.06E.

NEW GUINEA: On the Kokoda Track in Papua New Guinea, both the Australians and Japanese launch attacks during the day but both sides are stalemated.
In Milne Bay in Papua New Guinea, a reconnaissance aircraft spots a Japanese force consisting of seven destroyers and two patrol boats heading for the bay at 1633 hours local. At about 2100 hours local, 770 Japanese troops land and prepare for an assault on No. 3 Airstrip tomorrow night. The Japanese ships twice enter Milne Bay to shell Australian shore positions around Gili Gili, each time scrupulously avoiding firing on the brightly painted and lit-up hospital ship. This contrasted with the behaviour of their IJA comrades ashore who were mutilating and torturing Australian prisoners.

SOLOMONS ISLANDS: Shortly before midnight, Imperial Japanese Navy Destroyer Divisions 11 and 24 plus Patrol Boats 1 34 land the the Imperial Japanese Army's 1st Battalion 124th Infantry and most of Ichiki's rear echelon on Guadalcanal near Taivu Point, east of the Lunga perimeter.
Their orders include an anti-shipping sweep after landing the troops. Due to aircraft flying from Henderson Field during the night, the sweep is called off. Admiral Tanaka relieves Captain Murakami for this action.
In the air, three "Betty" bombers bomb Henderson Field on Guadalcanal early in the morning. At 1200 hours local, ten USMC F4F Wildcats and 14 USAAF P-400 Airacobras attack 18 "Betty" bombers which are escorted by Zero fighters. The Marines claim five "Bettys" and six Zero's shot down but this claim is much too high.

U.S.: The U.S., the American Red Cross, reveals that Japan has refused free passage of ships carrying food, medicine, and other necessities for American POWs held by Japan. Japan refused to allow even "neutral" ships to enter Japanese waters, even those on humanitarian errands. Despite protests by the Red Cross, Japan allowed just 10 percent of what POWs elsewhere received to reach prisoners in their territories.

 

[syscom3]

ALEUTIAN ISLANDS: The USN lands 4,500 US troops to occupy Kuluk Bay, Adak Island, amidst a terrific storm and they start building a runway; this airfield, later named Davis AAFld. Adak Island is located about 219 nautical miles east of Japanese-held Kiska Island.
Five USAAF 11th Air Force B-24 Liberators photograph Kiska Island but do not bomb due to overcast, and then fly patrol and photo reconnaissance over Amchitka and Tanaga Islands. P-38 Lightnings fly patrol between Great Sitkin and Little Tanaga Islands. The occupation puts North Pacific forces within 250 miles of occupied Kiska and in a position to maintain a close watch over enemy shipping lanes to that and to Attu. The tender Casco, conducting support operations from Nazan Bay, was damaged by a submarine torpedo and temporarily beached.

AUSTRALIA: General Douglas MacArthur, Commander of the Southwest Pacific Area, sends a message to Washington stating ".... as I have previously reporated am not yet convinced of the efficiency of Australian units (at Milne Bay), Papua New Guinea and do not attempt to forecast results."

POA (7th AF): 6th Fighter Squadron, 18th Fighter Group, moves from Wheeler Field to Kahuku, Hawaii with P-40s.

SWPA (5th AF): B-17s attack shipping in Saint Georges Channel

NG - Additional Japanese land at Milne Bay 1/124, anti-tank 6

BISMARCK ARCHIPELAGO: USAAF B-17 Flying Fortresses of the Allied Air Forces attack shipping in Saint George's Channel between New Ireland and New Britain Islands.

BURMA: Myitkyina, northernmost Japanese supply depot and airfield in Burma, from which fighters could hit Dinjan, India (terminus of the Assam-Burma Ferry), is bombed for the first time by eight China-based B-25s of the 10th Air Force's China Air Task Force.

NEW GUINEA: On the Kokoda Trail in Papua New Guinea, troops of the Australian 53d Battalion near Abuati are ordered to withdraw to Alola after being unable to get behind the Japanese troops. At 1500 hours local, the 39th Battalion is ordered to withdraw to Eora Creek, about 2 miles south of Alola. The officer commanding 39th Battalion, Lt Colonel Arthur Key, was later captured by the Japanese, interrogated and murdered. In Milne Bay, Australian troops continue patrolling and find several Australian dead with their hands tied behind them, arms broken by gunshot wounds and bayonetted.

SOLOMON ISLANDS: At 1400 hours local, 18 Zero fighters of the HIJMS Shokaku and HIJMS Zuikaku air groups, temporarily land based at Rabaul on New Britain Island, attack Allied targets. The Zero's outmaneuver 8 Marine Fighting Squadron VMF-223 F4F Wildcats and attack the high speed transport USS Colhoun wrecking the ship's boats and the after davits and starting a diesel fire from the boat wreckage.
The Zero's are then intercepted by USAAF P-400 Airacobras of the 67th Fighter Squadron, later joined by the VMF-223 Wildcats; the Americans shoot down five Zero's while losing four P-400s. Three F4Fs are written off when they land on Henderson Field, Guadalcanal leaving a total of five Wildcats to defend the island. After this action, the USAAF's P-400s are limited to medium-level interceptions and ground-attack missions. The evaluation of the P-400 by the Commander, Air South Pacific was, "No good at altitude and disheartening to the brave men who fly them." The 67th Fighter Squadron's
historian put it this way: "We can't maneuver and dogfight with the Zero -- what good are we? Our enlisted men are risking their lives every day trying to get the planes patched up -- for what? We're just eating up food -- and there's not enough to go around anyway, and using up valuable gasoline -- and the gas supply is getting lower every day. Hell, we can't fight. When the Japs come we're told to 'go on reconnaissance. ' What good are we?" In the ground attack role, the P-400 (P-39) will perform much better. The Japanese will give them the nickname of "Long Nosed Planes".
At 1517 hours local, 18 "Betty" bombers make an unopposed attack on USS Calhoun scoring a succession of hits on the starboard side which brought down the foremast, blew two 20 mm guns and one 4-inch (10.1 centimeter gun off the ship, and damage the engineering spaces. Two more direct hits kill all the men in the after deck house. Tank lighters from Guadalcanal rescued the crew, and Calhoun sinks about 2.2 nautical miles WNW of Henderson Field on Guadalcanal in position 09.24S,
160.01E with the loss of 51 men and 18 wounded. Shortly after 1500 hours, shortly before the "Betty" bomber attack, the first sizable aerial reinforcements arrive at Henderson Field in the form of 19 F4F-4's of VMF-224 and 12 SBD-3's of Marine Scout Bombing Squadr VMSB-231). At days end, the Cactus Air Force on Guadalcanal consisted of 86 pilots and 64 aircraft (including three USAAF P-400s and ten USN SBDs).
- Japanese submarine HIJMS I-19 launches a "Glen" seaplane to reconnoiter Santa Cruz Island.

 

[Wildcat]

AUSTRALIA: General Douglas MacArthur, Commander of the Southwest Pacific Area, sends a message to Washington stating ".... as I have previously reporated am not yet convinced of the efficiency of
Australian units (at Milne Bay), Papua New Guinea and do not attempt to forecast
results."

What an arse. Goes to show he had no idea of the conditions faced by the boys up in New Guinea.